Warmer | r

VI

R and Jaedra sprinted through the camp, leaving all the soldiers behind for the dark city alleyways.

"I need to warn my friends," R said, as they slowed to a brisk walk.

"Where?" She asked, breathing heavily.

"Stadium," he replied. Lights turned on all around them and sirens began to wail. It was the alarms letting people know that there was a breach.

"Crap," Jaedra began to run again. R followed after her. "Go to the subway!"

They ran to a nearby door that led under the ground and into the subway system. They winded through tunnels until they were under the stadium. They went back up to the surface and walked in the damp building, the sirens still screeching.

A large group of zombies awaited them. Jaedra froze for a second, reaching for R's hand. He walked forward again, going to meet with the leader of the group. It was his friend, M.

"R ... Jaedra," M struggles to get out. "Ready for a fight."

"Yeah, I can see that," she said, looking behind him at the hoard. He could tell it terrified her, but she kept her composure.

"Soldiers coming. Skeletons ... closing in," R said. A loud growling sound was heard and they all looked up at the glass stadium cover. Skeletons were pounding away at it, screaming.

"Keep them out," R said.

"We will. Run," M replied. Jaedra was off the second she heard glass breaking. Skeletal figures rained down onto the hoard of undead, but she didn't stick around to watch.

R and her sprinted through the rest of the stadium, Bonies chasing after them. She turned and shot at them with the gun she'd almost forgot she had. They heard soldiers run into the building and they ran faster.

"This way, come on!" She shouted, turning a corner.

They seemed to be getting farther away from the brawl when a skeleton tackled R to the ground. She turned to shoot it when she was taken down as well. R was fighting with the skeleton on him and couldn't help her.

She struggled under its grasp, trying to bring her gun up to it, but it pushed her hand back down, causing her to drop the weapon. She screamed a little as it attempted to bite down on her. She squirmed to avert it.

R got on top of the skeleton he was struggling with, killed it with a metal box he'd grabbed. He got up and smashed the head of the skeleton on top on Jaedra.

"Thank you," she said, getting up and grabbing her gun. She grabbed R's hand and off they went again.

They ran down more halls until they were stopped by a large group of the skeletons. She cursed to herself. R ran back the way they'd come and pushed open a door. They stopped when they realised it led outside, straight down to a decorative pool three stories down.

"It's over," she said, looking back at the Bonies approaching them.

"No. Keep you safe," R said, grabbing her arms. He looked back down at the ground and then back at her noticing that she finally understood what he was thinking. She shook her head, panicked. "You'll be okay."

Just as the skeletons got up to them, he turned her around and wrapped his arms around her. He leant back and let them plummet to the ground. They crashed into the pool below, R's back hitting the bottom. Jaedra swam up to the surface, rubbing the water out of her eyes and gasping for air. He stayed at the bottom, his eyes closed, not breathing.

She looked around, but couldn't find him. She turned her gaze down and saw him lying still at the bottom.

"Ry!" She cried. He wasn't moving. He felt the water move as she dove down and grabbed his shoulders, hauling him up.